(COVID-19) Self-employment Income Support Scheme

By 1st 4Immigration - #1 UK Immigration Experts -
This scheme is up and running now, you can start here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/claim-a-grant-through-the-self-employment-income-support-scheme 

Self-employed means a sole trader, ie someone who has a business and working for themselves- without forming a company. If you have a limited company, you won't be classed as self-employed for HMRC and this purpose. You will, however, be classed as self-employed if you are in a Partnership. 

Under the scheme, the self-employed will be paid 80% of their income, up to £2,500 per month, initially a lump sum for 3 months. The actual amount will be calculated as average of your income during the last 3 tax years (last tax year being 2018-19). If you were self-employed for less than those 3 tax years, it will be average of the available tax years. If you only started self-employment during 2019-20 tax year, you won't qualify. Also, only those with income of £50,000 from self-employment will qualify and only if self-employment forms more than a half of your total income. 

Self-employment income for those purpose is the line 'Profit from self employment' on your Tax Calculation (known as form SA302). You can also benefit from deferral of tax payment under Self-Assessment: what you would be expected to pay by 31 June 2020 can now be deferred until 31 January 2021. 

If you have a limited company, and pay yourself a director's salary under PAYE, you should look instead into Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme because you are an employee of your own company: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/claim-for-wage-costs-through-the-coronavirus-job-retention-scheme 
Unfortunately, so far, no help has been proposed to cover dividends. 

And here is a link to the summary of the proposed measures to help businesses, such as exemption from business rates, deferral of VAT and Self-Assessment payments etc:  https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-to-employers-and-businesses-about-covid-19/covid-19-support-for-businesses 


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